InnovateK12 Cohort Update: October 29, 2019
Happy Fall! InnovateK12 is growing and so we have decided to create two distinct newsletters for you. The InnovateK12 Newsletter is a way for us to communicate updates regarding InnovateK12 and innovation resources (articles, books, etc) regarding innovation work. The InnovateK12 Cohort Update will be dedicated to providing InnovateK12 cohort updates and toolkit resources. This update is geared towards our members.

Hopefully you will find both newsletters informative and relevant to the work you are doing in education. Enjoy our FIRST dedicated Cohort Update!
Where are we in the innovation cycle?
EVENT LAUNCH TIMELINE: September, October and November are our busiest months for innovation events! The energy is awesome with so many ideas coming in across a variety of events (students, staff, AND community). Launching events in the fall allows districts to hold design workshops in winter and implement prototype testing in the spring.

Here is our launch timeline (in chronological order) for all events through mid-October. We will share more event stories in our next newsletter!
East Central Public Schools - Gathering of Great Ideas
East Central is new to the InnovateK12 cohort and kicked off our 2019 fall events with the Gathering of Great Ideas. They are rocking their first year with 55% staff participation and 86% staff engagement! (active users / registered users)
Launch Date: 9/27
Jeffco Public Schools - JIAF
Jeffco is fortunate to be working with dedicated funds from the Jeffco Innovation Acceleration Fund (JIAF), providing Jeffco staff and now students with the opportunity to receive startup funding for top ideas. Check out the awesome video they created for their student event and local news coverage from ABC Denver7.
Launch Date: 9/30
Waseca Public Schools - Bluejay Idea Party
Waseca is new to the InnovateK12 cohort and has already blown us away with the way they launched their innovation event ! There was a dance party, DJ and all. Participation is sky high and the ideas keep rolling in!
Launch Date: 9/30
Edina Public Schools - The Hornet Hunt for Big Ideas
Edina is new to the InnovateK12 cohort and is running an event for the staff of South View Middle School. The Hornets are making a big impact with 85% staff engagement! Way to go Hornets!
Launch Date: 10/1
Eden Prairie Schools - Eagles Challenge
In their third year of crowd-based innovation, Eden Prairie is running separate building events with various challenge questions. While all staff participate in their own building challenge, they are able to see ideas from all buildings on the community site.
Launch Date: varies by building (10/2, 10/7, 10/11, 11/16, etc)
Upper Arlington Schools - UA Idea Hunt
Famous for their bear mascot , Upper Arlington is running their "Idea Hunt" again with their high school building staff. The UA Idea Hunt has generated over 1300 idea page views! Way to go, UA!
Launch Date: 10/7
Alexandria Public Schools - Fishing for Ideas
Alexandria is running an all district staff event, asking the question, "What is an idea, grounded in empathy and empathic thinking, that will result in a better Alexandria Public Schools?" As they end their second year of crowd-based innovation, they have TRIPLED the number of ideas from last year.
Launch Date: 10/7
High Desert Education Service District - ThinkUp!
 HDESD is leading innovation across their member districts! First, they are running ThinkUp! with their organization staff and will be lauching ThinkUp! @ Silver Rail this week. They have FUN!
Launch Date: Organization Staff 10/7, Silver Rail Elementary 10/30
Saint Peter Public Schools - The Great Ideas Harvest
With 2018-19 top ideas on empowering parents who have a language barrier and providing equitable technology access for students, Saint Peter staff will not disappoint! The Great Ideas Harvest is back again (one of our favorite event themes that relates directly to the community!)
Launch Date: 10/16
Mason City Schools - Ignite Your Vision
Mason High School, our pioneer in student events, is at it again! This year, Mason City Schools is asking their high school students to Re-Visualize their environment, Re-Imagine their experience, and Re-Examine their wellness. Go Mason!
Launch Date: 10/18
Event Launch Resources
Feel free to make a copy of each of these resources and customize for your organization.
As we move through the exciting "front-end" of innovation, we need to start planning for the hard work that comes afterwards. The next part of the innovation process is hard work BUT, we are here to help.

Over the next month, the InnovateK12 Team will lead you through a series of Design Workshop webinars, InnovateK12 toolkit resources, and our fall cohort meeting to get you and your team ready! All cohort events can be found on our cohort calendar. Need extra help? Let us know and we can meet with you to discuss options.
Preparing for the Design Workshop
Workshop logistics, Team Building, Facilitation, Preparing, location, invitation, empathy
Friday, October 25 ( Recording Here )
Design Workshop - Part 1
Welcome and Introduction, Intro to Human Centered Design, Facilitation Tips and Tricks, Empathize and Define
Design Workshop - Part 2
BIG Ideas and Other Challenges, Ideate, Prototype, Test, Bias Towards Action, Lean Expectations, Follow-up, Story-Telling
This video is a great example of how design thinking works with a real world problem, a diverse design team, time spent in discovery and empathy, and a creative approach to solutions. The video includes interviews with David Kelley , the founder of IDEO.
More Support for Your Team
Wednesday Support Calls
Each Wednesday from 11:00-11:30am CT the InnovateK12 Team hops on a zoom chat to support our members. These are open office hours and can be used as you see necessary! Zoom link is here. Cohort Calendar with remaining dates can be seen here.
RSVP for Fall Cohort Meetup - Friday, November 15th
We received feedback from our cohort last year that meeting quarterly would work best . So save the date and please RSVP!

Friday, November 15th, 12-3pm

We will meet in White Bear Lake and will also run a zoom call simultaneously for those who cannot attend in person. We will have time for districts updates, fall event questions and celebrations! We will also take a good amount of time to discuss Design Workshops, Case Studies, and BSIs (Big, Scary Ideas)!!

Event Software Tips and Tricks
Looking for "draft" ideas?
Draft ideas can be fun in a user's profile. Click on the drop down arrow next to your profile icon and click on "View Profile". Next, click on the "Activity" button and on "Ideas". You will find all of your ideas, including "draft" ideas. Please contact us if you have questions!
Click on "View Profile"
Go to "Activity" and "Ideas"
Don't forget the DATA!
The insights dashboard is customized for your innovation event and can provide great information about how your event is going. Can you answer these questions? If not, join us on a Wednesday support call!

  • What is your participation rate?
  • What is your engagement rate?
  • Who has made the most comments?
  • How many active users do you have?
  • How many "lurkers" do you have?
  • Which idea has the most views?
  • How can I export this data?